Types and characteristics of orchid diseases, their treatment, photos of affected leaves and care for them at home

Today, orchid is one of the most common and favorite indoor plants for many women.

But the flower is very susceptible to various diseases and pests, which often affect the leaves of orchids, so it is important to know how to treat the plant.

Therefore, in the article you will find out where these problems come from and how you can deal with them.

The importance of green cover

Functions that orchid leaves perform for the plant as a whole:

• In the process of photosynthesis, which occurs in the chloroplasts of the cells of the fleshy part of the leaf, the plant forms organic matter.
• Through the stomata located on the lower parts of the leaves, water evaporates.
• Stomata also participate in gas exchange, that is, through them carbon dioxide and oxygen are released into the environment.

What can a plant spoil from?

Different types of fungus, bacteria, viruses or parasitic waste products can cause orchid problems with leaves. They most often appear on a weakened plant, due to improper care of it.

Important! Another orchid is infected from another diseased flower, so when buying new plants, you need to carefully inspect and observe for some time, placing it under quarantine.

Types of fungal lesions and their photos

Below you can read about various diseases of orchid leaves, as well as about the appropriate treatment and see the affected plants in the photo.

Anthracnose

Anthracnose is a fungal diseasedue to stagnation of water in the axils of the leaves or due to increased humidity in the room. On the surface of the plant, you can first see not large, round spots of brown color.

Over time, they grow, and connect with each other. Further, the affected areas blacken and form a concavity on the surface of the sheet. A pink or yellow coating may appear.

About how there are spots on an orchid, why they arise and how to treat a plant, read our article, and here we talked about the causes of plaque and sticky drops on the leaves and peduncle.

Stickiness

Most often, the disease occurs due to the vital activity of parasites such as, for example, aphids, scale insects, and earthworms. When pests damage the surface of the leaf, sugar droplets appear on it.

Powdery mildew

This is one of the dangerous diseases that can lead to the death of a plant.Due to increased humidity and high temperatures, the plant is steamed, and this in turn leads to the appearance of a fungus. The disease looks like a white coating, like a houseplant, sprinkled with flour (about what reasons a white coating may appear on an orchid, what is its danger and how to get rid of it, we told here). In this case, the affected areas dry, and the plant itself withers.

If signs of fungus are found, it is necessary to spray with a solution of colloidal sulfur, but before that it is good to water the flower, about two hours before the procedure. For prevention, they are sprayed with Fitosporin.

Rust

Rust is a rarer disease of a fungal nature.. It is very simple to determine it, since spots first appear on the lower part of the leaves, and then tubercles with spores of a red-colored fungus, similar to rust.

Sooty mushrooms

The fungus occurs due to pests (scale insects, aphids, mealybugs), or rather their secretions, in which it is comfortable to breed. It is characterized by the appearance of black plaque on the leaves, which grows and clogs the stomata of the plant, as a result, the flower does not receive enough light and weakens.

How to fight?

Fungal diseases, which manifest themselves in various spots, are treated in approximately the same ways. therefore for treatment, use the following step-by-step instructions:

1. Isolate a diseased plant.
2. Affected areas must be cut off.
3. Sprinkle plant wounds with activated charcoal or burn with iodine.
4. Spray a flower with one of the fungicides. The procedure is carried out 3 times with an interval of 10 days. Fugintsid for treatment should be of systemic action, and not prophylactic, in order to exterminate the fungus.
5. Disinfect windows, window sills and tools. Burn the cut material.

List of drugs:

• "Fitosporin"- Good for treatment.
• Fundazole - universal action (affected areas are cleaned, dried and dusted).
• Oksikhom - destroys black spotting.
• "Topaz" - used for powdery mildew, rust.
• Fito Plus - kills powdery mildew and other fungi.
• "Immunocytophyte" - A universal drug of immune action, cures many diseases.
• Trichodermin - affects fungi.

In case of severe damage (anthracnose, rust), they are treated with Mikosan, or chem. Ridomil, Skor, Topsin-M preparations.

Attention! Before applying chemistry and drugs to fight disease, you must read the instructions for use.

What can improper care lead to?

• Deformation. Often, kinks can occur due to accidental mechanical injuries of the flower. But sometimes they can appear with insufficient watering, as well as with hypothermia of the plant after it.

  If there is a lot of nitrogen in the fertilizer, then this may be the reason for the deformation of the orchid leaves.

• Burn. Typically, this problem occurs when the activity of the sun increases, namely in spring and summer. Orchids are photophilous plants, but they need diffused light. But direct sunlight often causes burns, especially if there are droplets of moisture on the plant.

  The burn looks like a discolored place with a brown border. Subsequently, it dries, and a depression forms. The plant needs to be rearranged to a darker place and intensify watering. If the burns are too large, then the affected areas must be removed.

Bacterial invasion

Spotting. Due to improper watering, bright lighting in the hot season, or an overdose of fertilizers, the plant is infected. Dark spots form on weakened and yellowed leaves, which then begin to crack and a liquid appears in these ulcers (you will find out in our material about why orchid leaves crack and how to help the plant).

Step-by-step instructions for treating a bacterial infection:

1. Cut infected areas with a sterile instrument.
2. Treat the wound surface with an iodine alcohol solution.
3. For severe lesions, use undiluted Fitolavin.

Prevention

When you are going to buy an orchid, you need to find out the lighting requirements for this particular type, since when you get enough light, the plant will have resistance against pests and diseases. And if on the contrary there is a lot of lighting, then burns may appear.

Advice! Therefore, some time after the purchase, you will need to observe the flower and its reaction to the environmental conditions created by you.

In order to avoid the formation of fungi, it is necessary to observe the correct regime of watering and humidity, do not overfill the plants. It must be carefully watered so that moisture does not accumulate in the axils of the leaves. And in the autumn-winter period to create the most dry content. Also, in order to prevent disease, it is necessary to regularly air the room. If, after all, an overflow has occurred, or for other reasons there are signs of fungal infection, it is necessary to isolate the plant from other flowers (how to determine if the orchid was gulf and what to do about it, we told in detail here).

Conclusion

If you want your indoor orchids to bloom and please the eye, you need to buy only healthy plants, know the principles of proper care for them, and also take preventive measures for various diseases that need to be directed to optimizing the environment of the flower. When detecting diseases and pests, you need to know how to identify the enemy and how to treat the plant.

Watch the video: Orchid Disease - Bacterial Brown Rot, spotting, treating and preventing (December 2024).